In studying the interaction between travel and information technologies in the late 20th century, a gradual recognition has been made that both physical transport and telecommunications are subsystems of a communications system. This paper posits that the total effect of telecommunications on transport is likely to be a modification of travel patterns rather than a reduction in demand for travel. An assessment of the relationship between transport and information technology is made based upon an understanding of travel behavior, and relies on concepts borrowed from social psychology. It is stressed that research on behavioral factors underlying mobility, as a necessary part of the assessment of the impacts of information technologies on transport, be carried out. The types of interactions between telecommunications and transport which have been noted in prior research are reviewed and discussed, with particular regard to future implications.
Abstract